Interim President Moncef Marzouki arrived in Mauritania on Friday morning for a two-day official visit. Marzouki was welcomed at the Nouakchott International Airport by Mauritanian president Mohamed Oueld Abdel Aziz. The two presidents saluted their flags at the sound of their countriesâ€™ national anthems.

Mauritania is the second country in Marzoukiâ€™s Maghreb tour that aims to promote cooperation between countries of the Maghreb region as well as consolidate the Union of the Arab Maghreb, a free trade agreement signed in 1989 which has languished in recent years.

Morocco wasÂ the president’s first destinationÂ in a recent series of official visits to three of the Maghreb countries.